Sakaja Super Cup final: The numbers behind Githurai All-Stars victory

Curtains came to a close on the inaugural edition of the Sakaja Super Cup in a well-attended grand finale at the Police Sacco Stadium in South C on Tuesday.

The last remaining teams out of the over 350 teams that started the tournament, Githurai All Stars and Kawasaki, were going to face off for the winners' medals and the Sh3 million cash reward.

GAS won the title after a 6-4 post-match lotteries victory over Kawasaki. The teams had battled to a 1-1 draw in regular time.

The initial exchanges were a cagey affair, with no team taking the initiative. Most of the game was played in the middle of the field, with lots of duels and incomplete passes the order of the day. It was a game of nerves, and the first half clearly showed it.

Githurai’s Kevin Njuguna tried to drop deep to collect the ball from the defenders and play inviting long passes for his wingers to attack from out wide, but, that did not work as the Kawasaki back line was alert enough to intercept the passes and were also not leaving any space behind.

In the second half, that is when the match lit up. From the onset, the South B-based Kawasaki looked to put pressure on the Githurai All-Stars. Playing quick first-touch passes in the middle, the GAS backline was put on the back foot, and the early pressure earned Kawasaki a corner, however, Githurai managed to clear their lines.

Gift Mumo’s excellent link-up with William Owade and Sedryne led to a few more half chances that were comfortably dealt with by the GAS defence.

On their side, Githurai looked to utilise the wide zones, with their pacy wingers at the centre stage for most of their attacks.

They looked to transition as quickly as possible from their defensive third. Midfielder Kevin Njuguna was at the centre of it all, often the orchestrator of most of their attacking players. Patrick Lugo, the right-footed winger and team captain Teddy Ouko were the most dangerous with their runs in behind to meet Njuguna’s long balls over the top or into space.

This approach led to the first goal. In the 54th minute, a progressive pass from inside their half by Njuguna went in behind an already high Kawasaki backline. Ouko chased the ball, prompting a foul and a controversial penalty awarded in favour of GAS, which Njuguna calmly converted to put the team 1-0 ahead.

However, in the 66th minute, GAS got a red card, flipping the game in Kawasaki’s favour. The continued pressure earned Kawasaki a corner. Gift’s out-swinging corner had aimed at the near post, and a school-boy mistake from goalkeeper Ishmael Otieno saw the ball roll into the net and give Kawasaki the equaliser. Kawasaki couldn’t get the winner despite having a one-man advantage.

The game had to be decided on penalties, where GAS won after converting five of their six kicks while Kawasaki lost two.

Key moment

The key moment in the game was when Githurai’s winning penalty went in. This penalty marked the end of a rigorous run for the Githurai-based club and gave them the bragging rights as Nairobi’s best grassroots football club.